Archived 2019 News, Issues & Information
(12/31/19)
Weyerhaeuser is selling 630,000
acres of Montana timberland to
Southern Pine Plantations.
We think the interesting part of
this story is the price per acre.
Source: Missoula Current,
12/23/19.
(12/30/19)
"2/3 of Alabama is covered by
forests," declares the
headline of a Conservation Alabama
Tweet. So, naturally, the non-profit
group requests a donation. Perfectly
reasonable, don't you think?
(12/27/19)
"Pinnacle Renewable Energy Announces
Planned Construction of New
Industrial Wood Pellet Facility in
the U.S. Southeast." "The
Demopolis Facility is expected to
have annual production volume of
360,000 metric tonnes per annum..."
Wood pellet production is expected
in the second quarter of 2021.
Source: Cision, 12/19/19
(12/26/19)
Hardwood Timber and US-China
Trade. "US Trade Ambassador
Robert Lighthizer appeared on Fox
Business News on December 17 and
mentioned that hardwoods are part of
the trade deal with China.
The clip may be viewed here.
Hardwood and forest products are
mentioned at 1:56 of this clip
addressing how other areas of
agriculture also classified as
manufacturing will be used to get to
the $50B/year of agricultural
purchases that the President and
Administration were pushing for."
Source:
Tennessee Forestry Association,
12/20/19.
(12/23/19)
Rock & roll piano player and
Georgia forest landowner
Chuck Leavell shares his opinions on
the value of forests.
Includes some video stories.
(12/20/19)
Electrocution, fires... Be aware
that high voltage transmission lines
can kill you. If you're planning
to cut trees near a power line,
check out
TVA's safety article in the December
2019 Southern Loggin' Times,
page 34.
(12/19/19)
Mother Nature having an effect on
current pine stumpage market in the
US South. Source:
Forest2Market, 12/10/19.
(12/18/19)
Off the grid, tiny house rental
business in Australia keeping an eye
on "bush" fires. "What
started out as one cabin in the bush
managed by twin brothers Cam and
Chris Grant in their spare time is
now on track to be a sizeable travel
company..." "The startup turned over
A$500,000 last year with more than
2700 nights of accommodation booked
and an occupancy rate of 95 per
cent." Investors have backed them
with A$1.2 million.
(12/17/19)
"A
new generation of whiskey makers
is looking to quickly and cheaply
capitalize on bourbon’s booming
popularity by maturing it for just a
few months, weeks or even seconds."
Source: The Wall Street Journal,
12/13/19. Take away from this
story: Booming white oak prices
may be wispy memories in just a few
years. Enjoy them now, while you've
got a chance.
(12/16/19)
"Before
the 1930s, Christmas trees typically
were cut down on an individual’s
property or out in the wild.
Now, tree farms in all 50 states
(yes, Hawaii too) are where most
Christmas trees come from..."
Source: The Washington Post,
12/12/19
(12/13/19)
Property tax increase approved by
voters in Marengo County on
Tuesday. Source: Demopolis Times,
12/10/19. Alabama Forest Owners'
Association needs help from
landowners across the state to alert
us to property tax votes. Send
heads-up to
RLL@AFOA.org.
(12/12/19)
There are 270 stops on Alabama
Birding Trails -- places where you
might see some of the 430 bird
species documented in Alabama. A
Teacher Resource Guide,
created by the University of Alabama
and the Alabama Extension System,
contains lots of information about
birds and birding in our state.
(12/11/19)
Christmas tree grower
Ginger Duncan tells The
Landshow about her family's efforts
to provide a fun cut-your-own-tree
adventure. Ginger's 12 minute
interview begins at 4 minutes and 3
seconds into the program.
(12/10/19)
Everyone says, "Gopher tortoises
aren't rare. I have lots of them on
my property." ...But no one
wants to tell the US Fish & Wildlife
Service (FWS) where they are, for
fear of forever acquiring the FWS as
a permanent partner in their land
management activities. Experts who
watch the unfolding of endangered
species decisions say that if enough
tortoises were reported to the FWS,
the species might not be listed as
threatened or endangered. So... the
Forest Landowners Association (FLA)
has come up with a way for
landowners to anonymously report
tortoises.
Read the FLA's plan here.
(12/09/19)
See what Birmingham boys learned
when they visited, behind the
scenes, the Alabama River
Cellulose, Georgia-Pacific pulp mill
in Monroe County, Alabama.
Source: Bham Now, 12/4/2019.
(12/06/19)
Restoring the American chestnut tree
- a 5 minute story by CBS This
Morning, 12/5/19.
(12/05/19)
Bringing your pine seedlings home
from the nursery requires special
care to keep them alive.
Watch this Arborgen video on "Pine
Seedling Care During Transit."
(12/04/19)
The groups listed below don't
seem to want expanded markets in
Alabama for low quality wood.
They are evidently being led by a
group that doesn't seem to like it
when you harvest the timber you grow
-
The Dogwood Alliance. If you
know people who belong to one or
more of these groups, it might be
helpful if you could invite them to
sit down for a cup of coffee and a
chat.
(Here is an article about possible
things to chat about.) (here's
another)
-
Alabama Interfaith Power
& Light
-
Alabama Rivers Alliance
-
Alabama Sustainable
Agriculture Network
-
Black Warrior
Riverkeeper
-
Gasp
-
Mobile Bay Sierra Club
(12/03/19)
"Forty-three of Alabama’s 67
counties are losing people,"
reports Al.com on 12/1/19. A
potential forestland buyer might
consider those 43 counties prime
investment venues.
(12/02/19)
Americans bought more than 15
million "real" Christmas trees in
2017. According to the US
Department of Agriculture, there are
461 square miles of Christmas tree
farms in the U.S. Source:
How Many Christmas Trees Do We Chop
Down Each Year?, The Wall
Street Journal, 11/29/19.
(11/27/19)
Economic needs of local schools
prevails in Left Coast timber sales
lawsuit. Source: U.S.
News & World Report, 11/20/19
(11/26/19)
The market for houses is a major
driving force behind the demand for
southern pine sawtimber, so this
headline from yesterday's Fox
Business News Bulls & Bears is
not very encouraging:
Boomer homes to flood US market, but
who will buy them?
(11/25/19)
"Privately owned forestland is a
big problem for central planners who
have all the answers," is how
one might interpret this article in
The Hill, November 12, 2019:
The families who control the future
of America's forests.
(11/22/19)
Sunbelt Forest Ventures cuts ribbon
on $30 million sawmill at the South
Dallas Industrial Park.
Source: The Selma Times-Journal,
11/18/19.
(11/21/19)
Driven by U.S. volumes, North
American
wood pellet exports increased 13%
year-over-year through August.
Source: Forisk Consulting, 11/13/19.
(11/19/19)
The American Forest Foundation
reported last week that "important
disaster aid funding is now
available for family forest
owners to recover lost timber value
in Florida, Alabama, and Georgia in
areas affected by hurricanes
Michael and Florence. ... For
the first time, landowners will
receive aid to recover a portion of
their lost timber value..."
Find your local USDA Service Center
for information on how to apply.
(11/18/19)
Armchair loggers and other kids
might like to play with Forestry
& Logging, Farming Simulator 15.
Check out videos
here and
here.
(11/15/19)
Land buyers want to own their land
lock, stock, and barrel,
according to a survey by LandThink
Pulse.
(11/14/19)
Gun deer season opens in Alabama
on November 23. To find out what
hunters may be doing in your woods
and your neighbors',
check out Alabama's 2019-2020
Seasons and Bag Limits. And
WEAR ORANGE when in the
woods.
(11/13/19)
"With [Florida] Panhandle Timber
Down, [Florida] Agriculture
Commissioner Nikki Fried Thinks Hemp
Will Come Up Big." Source:
WFSU, 10/10/19.
(11/12/19)
Tips for improving squirrel habitat
from NC State Extension. Check it
out.
(11/11/19)
CAUTION TO TREE PLANTERS!
Freezing temperatures are predicted
for portions of Alabama for the next
few days. Message from forest
nursery company, ArborGen: At this
point in the season, seedlings have
been not been exposed to
acclimatizing cold temperatures
(chilling hours) and are therefore
susceptible to cold damage. ArborGen
recommends avoiding tree planting 48
hours before the onset of these
predicted, dangerously low
temperatures, especially where lows
are expected to dip below 25 degrees
F⁰. High, desiccating winds can
accompany freeze events like this
one. Cold and wind can negatively
affect both bareroot and
containerized seedlings. After this
cold front passes and in the coming
weeks, seedlings will become more
and more tolerant to cold air
temperatures which will improve
survivability after planting. It is
important to note that planting
during a freeze event could
significantly limit survivability
and vigor of your seedlings. Our
best advice is to delay planting
until after this cold front
passes…..however,
If
you must plant during a freeze
event:
-
Plant
the seedlings as deep as possible. With frozen
soils, this may only be possible with machine
planters.
-
Ideally,
seedlings should be planted when daytime
temperatures are above freezing.
-
Minimize
seedling exposure to air, especially the roots.
-
Store
seedlings in refrigerated coolers, vans or enclosed
areas where temperatures will not go below freezing.
-
Do not
store seedlings in open sheds or under tarps where
the seedlings will freeze.
(11/08/19)
Taylor Hart with First South Farm
Credit talks to Dave and Johnny
on
The Land Show (Episode 212)
about the great low-interest
rates and programs they have
that help make land buying easy.
Taylor's interview begins at 33:00
minutes into the episode.
(11/07/19)
Establishing cattle forage in
loblolly pine plantations is
just one of many articles available
at the website of the
Association of Temperate
Agroforestry.
(11/06/19)
AFOA commends U.S. Senators Gary
Peters (D-MI) and Roger Wicker
(R-MS), Chairman of the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation, for urging the
Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) to
include representatives with a rural
land perspective, including
forestland, on the Drone Advisory
Committee (DAC). Recognition
of the inherent differences in rural
and urban environments is very
important to this rapidly growing
technology.
(11/05/19)
If you know someone in high
school or college who might be
interested in a forestry career,
tell them about
a guide to accredited forestry and
natural resources programs published
by the Society of American Foresters.
There are more than 3 dozen schools
across the U.S. eager to meet your
student. Auburn University and
Alabama A&M University are at the
beginning of the list.
(11/04/19)
The recently launched
Future Forests + Jobs is
an initiative aimed at pushing
back against anti-forestry and
anti-biomass activists.
(11/01/19)
MAYBE! The market for sawtimber
and chip-n-saw is not dead, but
in Alabama, don't hold your breath.
That's how we interpret Forisk
Consulting's report:
How much longer will pine sawtimber
accumulate in the U.S. South?
Hint: scroll down to the chart at
the bottom of the article -- look
for "Alabama" and "Post-2028." Ugh!
(10/31/19)
NO! The market for paper is not
dead. "Packaging is growing
all over the world, along with
tissue papers, and pulp for hygiene
products." Source: McKinsey &
Company, 8/19.
(10/30/19)
Why thin your pine stands?
"Controlling stand density by
thinning can improve the vigor,
growth rate, and quality (and value)
of the remaining 'crop' trees."
Learn more:
Thinning Pine Stands - Woodland
Owner Notes from NC
State Extension.
(10/29/19)
How to Plant a Seedling
is a short video produced by the
Texas A & M Forest Service. The
instructor demonstrates how to plant
both bareroot and container loblolly
pine seedlings using a dibble bar.
The 5 minutes of instructions are
embedded in an almost 8 minute
video, so you may want to skip to
the start, which begins at 1 minute
48 seconds into the video.
(10/28/19)
Did you know there were 93
million forest tree seedlings
produced in Alabama in the 2017-2018
planting year? Most, about 91
million, were pine seedlings. There
were 1.2 billion forest tree
seedlings produced in the U.S., with
most production and planting
occurring in the southern states.
Source:
Forest Nursery Seedling Production
in the United States - Fiscal Year
2018,
Tree Planters' Notes, Vol.
62, #1,2.
(10/25/19)
Berry College is looking for a
home for 400 surplus large potted
Mountain Longleaf Pine seedlings
(click
here for photo). "These are in
4" X 4" X 14" deep tree pots and are
from mixed mountain LLP sources
(Berry College and Sheffield WMA in
GA, Mountain Longleaf WR and
Talladega NF in AL). I would prefer
to send the entire lot to one
location and will accept donations
to our Berry College Longleaf Pine
Project in return. If you would like
them, please let me know what you
might be willing to donate!"
Contact Berry College's Dr. Martin
Cipollini.
(10/24/19)
Dog runs over man with 4-wheeler.
Man airlifted to hospital.
Source: WKRG, Loxley, Alabama.
(10/23/19)
New wood products manufacturing
plant to open in Montgomery next
month. Conner Industries,
based in Texas, produces lumber,
pallets, crates, and other packaging
products. The company currently
operates 12 facilities in the U.S.
(10/22/19)
Planting Longleaf: "If
wildlife is important, [plant about
450 seedlings per acre]. If timber
and pine straw are a priority,
[plant 600+,] as many as 726
seedlings per acre."
Watch the "Three Minute Management"
video titled Planting Longleaf
on The Longleaf Alliance's YouTube
channel. Source: Q & A in The
Longleaf Leader, Fall 2019.
(10/21/19)
"Oversupplied." If you plan
to buy timberland somewhere in
Alabama just for the pine timber
investment, you might want to the
avoid buying land in the area Forisk
Consulting says, in their Blog
Ranking Timber Supply in the South,
is "Oversupplied."
See green area (Lamar, Fayette,
Pickens, Tuscaloosa counties) on
Forisk Consulting's 2029 projection
map.
(10/18/19)
Read or listen to the news
everyday, but question and compare a
variety of sources. That's the
message we received loud and clear
from our West Coast friend and
Editor of The Forestry Source,
Steve Wilent, in his article:
Looking at the News: Reasons for
Doubt.
(10/17/19)
"Sometimes
it is hard to write this article,
and this is one of those times.
Timber prices are down again just
about everywhere in the third
quarter. The situation is so bad in
the Northeast that sawmills are
going out of business because of the
U.S.-China trade dispute. You know
it is bad when part of the good news
for us in the U.S. is really bad
news for the folks in Canada.
Sawmills are closing in British
Columbia and manufacturing capacity
is shifting to the U.S. South,"
wrote Marshall Thomas, President of
F & W Forestry Services, in the
latest issue of F&W's Forestry
Report.
(10/16/19)
Biofuel producer Enviva will build a
$175 million plant in the Port of
Epes in Sumter County, Alabama,
manufacturing wood pellets for
export to Europe and Asia.
(10/15/19)
So, who are the farmers going to
endorse in the March 2020 primaries?
Senator? President? Judges? Public
Service Commission?
Check out Alabama Farmers Federation
FarmPAC Endorsements.
(10/14/19)
Grazing Livestock in Woodlands:
Benefits, Detriments and Management
Recommendations is a new
publication from the University of
Tennessee by David Mercker and Jason
Smith. Plants favored by livestock
and some that are poisonous are
listed.
(10/11/19)
Between John Phillips and Wayne
Fears, you're going to enjoy this
great story about building a simple
hunting cabin in the woods.
(10/10/19)
Wood splinters flying out of logging
machine cutter head blew out a truck
tire 35 feet away. Always
make sure loggers know you are in
their work area.
(10/09/19)
Because of a combination of high
winds and low humidity creating
conditions for potentially
catastrophic fires, California's
largest utility,
Pacific Gas & Electric, is shutting
off power in the largest preventive
outage in state history as a
precaution against sparking
wildfires from faulty power lines.
The state seems to be in a
perpetual game of tug of war between
those who want to loosen forest
management regulations and those who
believe that the fires are caused by
winds and not bad forest management.
Perhaps wildfire education would
help. Dr. Karen Abt, a a
research Economist with the U.S.
Forest Service at the Forestry
Sciences Laboratory, thinks so. She
spoke to landowners on this month's
Capital Ideas--Live! about
the importance of and economic
benefits of wildfire prevention
education efforts.
(10/08/19)
Alabama's new litter law,
which took effect Sept. 1, has
increased the penalties, especially
litter thrown from cars, from a
Class C to a Class B misdemeanor.
Sponsored by Rep. Margie Wilcox
(R-Mobile), the bill also
includes jail time up to six months,
fines up to $3,000 plus court costs,
and community service on the trash
pick up service. Fifty percent
of the fine is earmarked for the
state’s General Fund and 50 percent
will be retained by the municipality
or county.
Source: Ala Legislative Link,
NFIB, 10/4/19
(10/07/19)
The
Rebuild Alabama Act, which
increased the statewide gasoline and
diesel taxes by 6 cents on September
1, requires transparency with and
accountability of taxpayer dollars.
One is for each county commission to
adopt an annual transportation plan
detailing the list of projects to be
prioritized in the coming year based
on anticipated revenue and to make
that plan visible to the public.
Adopted by each county governing
body, the plans are available on the
Association of County Commissions of
Alabama (ACCA) website.
(10/04/19)
Tariffs on imported wood cabinets
which are frequently made with US
grown timber will probably have a
great impact on stumpage prices for
cabinet quality trees.
This will not be good for forest
owners.
(10/03/19)
The Lodge at Gulf State Park, A
Hilton Hotel, in Gulf Shores has
been chosen for the 2020 Annual
Meeting of the Southern Christmas
Tree Association (SCTA) to be
held August 7-9. SCTA has reserved a
block of rooms for participants
until July 7, 2020.
Learn more about the meeting and
more in their quarterly newsletter.
(10/02/19)
Prescribed burning in Florida is a
national model for successfully
managing statewide forests and lands
through safe, controlled, carefully
managed prescribed fire. Earlier
this week, agriculture commissioner
Nikki Fried
announced changes to the state’s
prescribed burning program
and said that more will come in the
near future. AFOA wonders if
Florida will stay the national model
with these changes.
(10/01/19)
So, what do you think of this?
The Southern Timber Supply Analysis
is a new application that is the
first of its kind in the nation.
The application uses maps
that allow users to estimate the
amount of timberland, standing
timber, and growth and removals
within a user-specified distance or
trucking time of any site in the
Southern United States.
(09/30/19)
Wildfire Prevention Education has
significant economic benefits.
Preventable wildfires nationwide can
cause billions of dollars’ worth of
damage each year and cost billions
more to suppress or manage. A study
found that if fire prevention
activities in Florida could have
been increased during the winter
months from 2002 to 2007, then $3.9
million would have been saved from
economic losses and avoided
firefighting expenditures.
Each additional dollar spent on fire
prevention education would have
reduced fire-related losses and
suppression costs by $35,for a
benefit-to-cost ratio of 35:1.
Source: Fire Management Today.
(09/27/19)
In the latest episode of The Land
Show, Joel Martin,
Director of the Solon Dixon Forestry
Education Center at Auburn
University and Balsie Butler,
Fire Operations Chief for the
Alabama Forestry Commission, talk
about happenings in forestry, dry
weather and fires. Brian Watts
with the Southeastern Land Group,
talks about what type of student may
have an interest in going to
forestry school. Also with
Southeastern Land Group, Randall
Upchurch talks poultry farms
while Tim Baker shares food
plot tips and early season dove and
teal hunts.
(09/26/19)
To understand how American democracy
has worked, and why its future may
be limited, it’s critical to look at
the issue of property. Owning
property remains key to financial
security. Homes today account
for roughly two-thirds of the wealth
of middle-income Americans;
homeowners have a median net worth
more than 40 times that of renters.
Also, people who own something — a
house, a farm, a small business —
tend to be far more engaged with
their communities than those who
rent or work merely for wages.
Without a policy agenda that creates
new opportunities for ownership,
those who have nothing, will have
less reason to guard the property
rights of others.
(09/25/19)
The Alabama Forestry Commission
(AFC) has upgraded the recent Fire
Danger Advisory to a statewide Fire
Alert effective immediately.
(09/24/19)
The experience of harvesting his own
game unexpectedly created
not only a deeper connection to
nature, but with his family as well.
“I couldn't believe how proud it made me feel,” [John
Kelly, electrical engineer] said. “I
finally understand how my granny
feels when she fixes us a meal and
makes sure we know that this ‘squash
is from the garden right here on the
farm.’ There is something completely
different about the food you harvest
yourself from the land.” Source:
Alabama Department of Conservation
and Natural Resources, 9/24/19.
(09/23/19)
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
has been petitioned to list the
Gopher Tortoise east of Mobile
(Alabama, Georgia, Florida, & South
Carolina) under the Endangered
Species Act. 90 percent of the
tortoise habitat is on privately
owned land.
Read a brief report on a
July 11 meeting hosted by the USFWS
and the National Alliance of Forest
Owners as reported by Dan Roach in
the Southeastern Forester,
Summer 2019.
(09/20/19)
Alabama’s forest-based industry
is nationally ranked second in pulp,
paper, paperboard production, sixth
in lumber production, and sixth in
panel production. Every county
in Alabama benefits economically by
forestry and its industrial
footprint. The Alabama Forestry
Commission, coordinated with the
Forest Inventory Analysis,
Geographical Information System, and
Economic Development personnel, have
assembled a database using various
data sources to develop their new
Forest Industry Directory map
application.
You can use it to find all of the
state’s primary and secondary
wood-using industries and associated
products.
(09/19/19)
Insect musicians chirp, click, zip,
rattle, and lisp from trees, shrubs,
lawns, fields, woodlands and maybe
even from inside our homes.
These songs, usually created by
crickets, katydids, grasshoppers,
and cicadas rubbing their body parts
against another, are a prominent
element of summer and early fall in
most of North America.
Listen for yourself to hear the
different songs of each one.
(09/18/19)
"Don't
do this," advised Washington
State forest landowner Ken Miller to
Japanese legislators, as he held up
a copy of the state's forest
practices regulations. "I'm afraid
I'm going to die before they get
around to" fixing the burdensome
regulations that discourage forest
management activities. Source: The
Business Institute of Washington,
8/26/19
(09/17/19)
Forest landowners met with
Consulting Forester Billy Rye
on
Stan Faulkner's Lauderdale
County forestland today. We had the
opportunity to visit a stand of
white oaks estimated to be worth
more than $6,000 per acre. Other
experts on hand to answer questions
were hardwood silviculturist
Callie Jo Schweitzer, U.S.
Forest Service, stumpage buyer
Mike Trotter, Roach Sawmill &
Lumber Company, and wildlife
biologist Mitchell Marks. A
Consulting Forester visit is
scheduled
Mobile County on October 24 with
Heath Eckert.
(09/16/19)
Taking care of land, especially
large acres of forestland, can be
challenging and overwhelming for
landowners.
Establishing a long term
relationship with a consulting
forester can help ease your worries.
(09/13/19)
Wildfires in north and south
Alabama made the news this week.
WKRG reported on a fire in south
Alabama and
WAAY reported on one in north
Alabama. Be careful!
(09/12/19)
Have you ever thought of building
a little cabin in the woods? Or
maybe 5 little cabins for rental
income?
Check out some of the cabins
available for rent on National
Forests for ideas.
(09/11/19)
Catching spider webs in the face
when riding your UTV is not much
fun.
Watch this short video to see how
one hunter solved the problem.
Send photos of your solution to
RLL@AFOA.org
(09/10/19)
Wearing the right type of clothing
is crucial to safe and effective
prescribed fires. For
example, make sure the clothing is
flame resistant and a one piece is
brightly colored. Wear long pants
and sleeves and close-toed shoes.
(09/09/19)
Photography is one way to enjoy
nature and to show off your
beautiful property. In an effort
to get more folks outside,
Outdoor Alabama is now accepting
photos in their 2020 Photo Contest.
This year's contest is a joint
project between the Alabama
Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources (ADCNR), the
Alabama Tourism Department (Tourism)
and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service in Alabama (USFWS).
The contest has several different
categories, is open to amateur
photographers with a limit of 10
entries per contestant.
(09/06/19)
Wayne Ford is describing the Trap
Museum near Romulus, Alabama,
the location where the AFOA
will have its field day and Evening
Reception on April 21, 2020.
(09/05/19)
"I hope that other landowners
will hear my story and join me in
fighting for fair compensation."
Matthew Walsh, a landowner in
Blanco, Texas, is one of the first
landowners to go through
condemnation proceedings associated
with a pipeline building project.
Kinder Morgan was ordered to pay
fair market value for Walsh's land
after a Walsh rejected the initial
offer of $16,707 and the company
forced him into legal proceedings.
Although this is Texas, it can
happen anywhere, including Alabama.
(09/04/19)
Twenty-four pages (7 to 31)
of smiling faces in the
Alabama Pals Summer Quarter 2019
newsletter, show the
happiness of people of all ages
getting satisfaction from helping
clean up our state. Alabama Pals is
a non-profit organization that
provides and implements anti-litter
programs.
(09/03/19)
If you've been asked to give access
to your land by the
Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA)
Program of the U.S. Forest Service,
this
video explains why and how an FIA
crew measures the forest resource on
your land. Working as the
nation's tree census, the FIA
projects how forests are likely to
appear 10 to 50 years from now.
The latest report was published last
May. And, last month, Dan
Chappell, coordinator of the Alabama
Forestry Commission's Forest
Inventory and Analysis program,
spoke to us about
Alabama's forest resources.
(08/30/19)
MIT scientists believe that
releasing genetically altered mice
on the islands of Martha's Vineyard
and Nantucket could curb and even
wipe out Lyme disease on these
islands.
(08/29/19)
Planting Hardwoods for Today’s
Timber Markets. Looking to plant
hardwoods? Check out the
nurseries who advertise in
AFOA's monthly newsletter
(pages 3 and 8, classifieds on the
lower right of page 2). For more
information,
listen to Dr. John Willis,
who spoke at our 2019 Annual Meeting
about Managing stands of mixed pine
and hardwoods.
(08/28/19)
The Alabama Wildlife
and Freshwater Fisheries (WFF)
Division will conduct a draw hunt of
400 permits to hunt sandhill cranes,
becoming the third state east of the
Mississippi River to hold a sandhill
hunt.
This is the first time since 1916
that the species will be open to
hunting. If sandhill cranes
winter on your north Alabama land,
you may want offer a special access
fee for this new hunting
opportunity. List your offering on
www.HuntingLand.bz or
www.HuntingClub.bz,
whichever is appropriate.
(08/27/19)
This teaser for Great Southern
Wood's Abbeville Fiber, a
new southern yellow pine sawmill
that will be located in the old West
Point Pepperell building could be
for any of the new mills coming to
Alabama and the Southeast. “...11
NEW OR REBUILT sawmills that have
commenced production represent
nearly 1.9 billion board feet of
additional Southern softwood lumber
capacity. Together with the
20 mills that have already completed
expansion/upgrade projects, over 2.4
billion board feet of Southern
lumber capacity has been added since
2017, increasing total Southern
softwood lumber capacity to over
20.3 billion board feet, or a 14%
increase over 2016 levels.” Source:
TimberMart-South~In Depth & In
Focus, 2Q19.
(08/26/19)
BE CAUTIOUS! Don't be
scammed by get-rich-quick hemp
schemes.
(08/23/19)
Listen to Forest Landowners
Association's CEO Scott Jones
express his pride in private forest
landowners (scroll down and
click on "10. Forest Landowners
Association") in an interview with
New York's Catskill Forest
Association. About 1 hour,
but worth it.
(08/22/19)
We continue our discussion on
biomass for energy with a blog from
Forest2Market's Stan Parton:
WSJ's Incomplete Reporting
Perpetuates Misconceptions About
Bioenergy. Among all the
topics highlighted in the blog, we
hope this sentence will stay with
you: "The wood pellet industry is
dwarfed by the traditional forest
products industry."
(08/21/19)
"Wood pellet markets can provide
important incentives for private
property owners to keep forests
intact rather than convert them to
other uses..." reports
Blake Hudson, A.L.
O’Quinn Chair & Professor of Law at
University of Houston Law Center, in
an opinion piece in The Hill,
8/15/19.
(08/20/19)
Forester Brian Watts talks about
hunting leases on
Episode 201 of The Land
Show (download
the episode and "slide" to Brian's
segment at 44:35 - about 7 minutes).
(08/19/19)
"The reason a lot of people do not
recognize opportunity is because it
goes around wearing overalls looking
like hard work." Thomas Edison.
Watch this #forestproud video.
(08/16/19)
Liabilities related to leasing
land to mountain bike clubs can be
covered with Alabama Forest Owners'
Association's
Hunting Lease Liability Insurance
Policy. See related
discussion including yellow
highlights at
www.afoa.org/CILive/2019/08.htm#metcalf.
(08/15/19)
Many forest landowners could make an
extra $7 to $10 (or more) per acre
each year from their land by leasing
to hunting clubs. For background
reading, check out:
How to Profit from Your Land with
Hunting Leases. To find
hunters interested in leasing your
land, use
www.HuntingLand.bz, a free
member service of the Alabama Forest
Owners' Association.
(08/14/2019)
Pine straw can earn forestland
owners additional income, especially
when traditional timber markets are
down.
Becky Barlow, Professor of Forestry
and Wildlife Sciences at Auburn
University, spoke about this to our
landowners on Capital Ideas-Live!
And,
NC State Extension forestry has a
cool video on one way it can be
harvested.
(08/13/2019)
The Alabama Commerce Department has
named Brenda Tuck as the first rural
development director.
We hope she makes her first priority
to find a wood processor to take up
the slack created when
International Paper closed its
Courtland paper mill.
(08/12/2019)
The Endangered Species Act is good
at preventing extinction but has
proven less successful in recovering
endangered species. But
today, that changed when
U.S. Secretary of the Interior
David Bernhardt unveiled
improvements to the implementing
regulations of the act
designed to increase transparency
and effectiveness and bring the
administration of the Act into the
21st century.
(08/09/2019)
As the trade war between America and
China intensifies, investors are
taking refuge in government bonds,
pushing yields down.
According to an index calculated by
Bloomberg, a quarter of the bonds
issued by governments and companies
worldwide are now trading at
negative yields.
(08/08/2019)
Frequent Prescribed Fires Can Reduce
Risk of Tick-borne Diseases.
(08/07/2019
On April 9, Roger Pilon, Ph.D,
J.D., gave the dinner address at the
Twenty-fifth Anniversary Celebration
of the Property Rights Foundation of
America. His speech,
"How Undermining Property Rights Has
Increased Economic Inequality: A
Paradox Explained",
discussed the role of property in a
free society. He said that it is
fundamental, not simply because it
encourages economic efficiency and
prosperity, which it does, but
because, as a moral matter, it draws
lines between us, one from another
telling us what we may and may not
do. In talking about the Declaration
of Independence, he said that the
theory of rights can be reduced to
three simple rules:
One: Don’t take what
belongs to someone else.
Two: Keep your promises.
Three: If you fail in
rule one or two, give back what
you’ve wrongly taken or wrongly
withheld.
(08/06/2019)
Russia, the world’s largest country
by area, has the largest forest cover. It is one of
the rare countries that have seen an increase in forest
cover since 1990, thanks to the dedication of the
Russian government. More than 20% of the world’s
untouched forests are in the Russian Federation.
However, China’s colossal appetite for wood which has
brought jobs and cash to the region, is now helping make
Russia the global leader in forest depletion, fueling
fears that Siberian logging towns will eventually be
left without a livelihood.
(08/05/2019)
Polyculture farming is an
agricultural method of planting multiple crops in the
same field.
It's one way to diversify and increase profits from
your land. To learn about this and other agroforestry
topics,
the Center for Agroforestry has a podcast series that
covers this and other pertinent topics.
(08/02/2019)
Germany’s Longest Bond Goes Negative
for First Time.
Spooked by a revival of trade tensions, investors piled
into safe assets on Friday, pushing 30-year German
government yields into negative territory for the first
time. With negative interest rates becoming
common in Europe and with the Fed reducing rates here in
the U.S., investments in the solid positive growth of
trees, even with depressed stumpage prices, is beginning
to look better and better -- AFOA comment.
(08/01/2019)
August 15, 2019 is the deadline for
grant application submissions to the Alabama Historical
Commission for the 2020 Grant Program.
The $900,000 grant program is available to fund
improvements at historic properties as well as
educational programming at historic sites in Alabama.
Grants up to $20,000 will be awarded for any one entity.
(07/31/2019)
What do the Marsh Rabbit, Swamp
Rabbit, Eastern Cottontail and the Appalachian
Cottontail have in common?
They are the four species of rabbits native to Alabama.
(07/30/19)
Bio-mass company Enviva says it is
evaluating a $175 million project to build a wood pellet
plant in the Port of Epes Industrial Park in Sumter
County.
The project could create approximately 85 full-time jobs
and an estimated 180 additional jobs in logging,
transportation, and local services.
(07/29/19)
Pine Resin is considered the new
‘Green Gold’ in Brazil’s planted forests.
Elliotti pine trees can produce resin for up to 15
years, and each tree produces roughly 6.6 lbs. of resin
per year depending on seedling quality, age,
method of resin extraction and forest management
protocols. For example, if a landowner uses a planting
method with a spacing of 3 x 3 meters (1,111 trees per
hectare), the forest can yield 6,124 lbs. of resin per
hectare per year with an annual gross revenue of over
R$10,000 per hectare. For comparison: one Brazilian Real
= USA 26 cents and one hectare equals 2.47 acres.
(07/26/19)
This geographic information system (GIS) tool may have
some good information about your property.
(07/25/19)
Wear orange during hunting season.
(07/24/19)
Timber Theft affects everyone.
Texas A&M Forest Service is educating Texas landowners
on the dangers and how to prevent
it.
Other states are, too.
Read this for a guide on
what to do if timber theft happens to you.
(07/23/19)
Researchers at Auburn University’s Southern Forest
Nursery Management Cooperative, have developed
technologies to save seedlings
by using Landspring, the chemical
1-methylcyclopropene, which reduces ethylene production
and stress on young plants. This has increased the
survival rate by 10 percent, which would potentially
yield the growth of an additional 120 million
(the article said 1.2 million, but 120 million has
been confirmed as the correct figure) pine seedlings
after outplanting—the process of lifting, packing,
storing and replanting—as compared to non-treated
seedlings.
(07/22/19)
Brothers Steuart and Tom Walton,
grandsons of Walmart founder Sam Walton, and part of one
of the planet’s wealthiest families, are largely
responsible for a
cycling fantasyland, "Oz Trails", in Northwest Arkansas.
Today there are 400 miles of well-maintained trails—250
or so for mountain biking; another 150 in paved
paths—with 2 miles of trails added every week. As
Bentonville, Ark. grows as a biking Mecca, cyclists from
all over come to ride the different trails.
Epic Rides added the Oz Trail as a stop in 2018,
and in 2022, nearby Fayetteville will host the UCI
Cyclocross World Championships, a Super Bowl for
off-road riding.
As biking grows in
popularity,
some landowners are building "pay-to-play" bike trails.
(07/19/19)
"Housing Stays Flat, China Remains The Wild Card For
Sawtimber"
is the lead headline in the Summer
2019 issue of the F&W Forestry Report.
(07/18/19)
If you have yet to use a drip
torch on your land, this fire spitting drone
may be a little more than you need right now.
Read about it, here, and
be sure to watch the video at the end of the
article.
(07/17/19)
McDonald's Canada plans to experiment with wooden
cutlery.
Source: CBC News, 6/21/19
(07/16/19)
Many mammals leave their young alone for the majority
of the day,
and fledgling birds are on the
ground for a period of time being fed by their parents
before they take flight.
If you discover wildlife that looks like it needs
rescuing, the first thing to remember is that, despite
appearances, this is very rarely the case.
(07/15/19)
Trapping plays a vital role in wildlife management.
Predator control, nuisance animal trapping, preventing
the spread of disease, and damage to timber stands and
agricultural crops are just a few of the reasons why.
Furbearers
are a valuable and renewable natural resource that are
managed and regulated by the Alabama Department of
Conservation and Natural Resources.
(07/12/19)
Sandhill Crane Hunting in Alabama: A new and
unique hunting opportunity will be available for Alabama
residents beginning in the 2019-20 season. Alabama will
join Tennessee and Kentucky, to be the third state east
of the Mississippi River to reopen a
sandhill crane hunting season. Source:
Alabama Hunting News, 7/19.
(07/11/19)
China’s imports of US forest products fell by 430
million dollars
in the first four months of 2019.
The US market share fell by 35%, while Canadian and
Russian exporters have increased their shares since
2018, reports the Wood Resource Quarterly,
7/9/19. See also:
China still a vital market for hardwood from United
States.
(07/10/19)
Choose-and-cut Christmas trees are the freshest of
fresh trees
and it's time to plan for the
upcoming season. The 2019 Annual Meeting of the
Southern Christmas Tree Association (SCTA) is
going to be held in Tupelo/Amory, Miss., August 9-11,
2019. The SCTA's mission is to assist growers in the
production and marketing of high quality, REAL Christmas
trees for consumers, with members primarily in Alabama,
Louisiana and Mississippi.
Read their
latest newsletter here.
(07/09/19)
Several
factors are keeping prices down for sawtimber,
the wood standing on the stump in your woods. Higher
prices for lumber, the sawtimber that is manufactured
into boards, don’t necessarily lead to higher stumpage
prices. Stands are older, meaning they yield more volume
and upgraded sawmills can make more lumber from a given
number of logs. Also, housing starts have not climbed
back to their long-term average level, they have been
increasing since 2009. Southern pine lumber production
has increased along with housing starts and the two
series are very strongly correlated.
(07/08/19)
Can wood replace concrete and steel as the go-to
building material?
The
Economist newspaper thinks so. The paper
is considered “a political, literary, and general
newspaper”, never abandoning its belief in free trade,
internationalism and minimum interference by government,
especially in the affairs of the market. James Wilson,
who established the paper in 1943, insisted that all the
arguments and propositions put forward in his paper
should be based on fact and rigor. Their stories offer a
distinctive blend of news, based on facts, and analysis,
incorporating The Economist’s perspective.
(07/05/19)
Growing and Harvesting Dividends from Timber REITs,
a Forisk Blog by Brooks Mendell, 6/20/19.
(07/03/19)
Massive yellow jacket nests are appearing in Alabama.
Again.
More than 90 super nests with around
15,000 yellow jackets appeared in 2006. Charles Ray, an
entomologist working with the Alabama Cooperative
Extension System, said that
2019 may be shaping up to mirror that year.
(07/02/19)Nationwide,
feral swine cause $1 billion annually in damage to
agricultural enterprises. Because of the increasing
populations of the pests, Congress has included funding
for a feral swine removal program in the 2018 Farm Bill.
Those funds, $75 million, will soon be available through
the
Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program in key
states to help agricultural interests reduce feral swine
numbers and to restore damaged farmland.
Participants are required to submit a grant application
by August 19, 2019 and to contribute 25 percent of the
cost of projects that can be from cash or in-kind
services. Alabama is one of 10 states in the pilot
program. Editors Note: We hope this program will
actually focus on controlling feral swine and won’t be
just another poorly thought-out jobs program reminiscent
of the failed Cogongrass control program in 2010.
(07/01/19)
Bruce Alber, a retired
forester, planted a forest at age 23. For 40-plus
years, he documented the lifecycle of it from planting
to harvest and then to replanting when he was 65. In
addition to seeing the tree and forest grow,
the photos he took at the same tree nearly every year
captured his own parallel life changes.
(06/27/19)
This year's hot summer
may make conditions more conducive to wildfires.
Prescribed burning can play a role in starting them as
well.
Fires destroy too many structures and timberlands, but,
in the majority of the cases, the entire loss could have
been prevented.
(06/25/19)
Wealthy Families Are Adding Forests to Their Portfolios.
It's a long-term bet on growth." Source:
Bloomberg News, 6/16/19.
(06/24/19)
Landowners shouldn't have to jump through state-level
hoops before heading to federal court to accuse the
government of taking their property.
In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court overturned decades
of precedent
that barred property owners from
going to federal court until their claims had been
denied in state court.
(06/21/19)
The Property and Environment Research Center (PERC)
is a conservation and research institute dedicated to
free market environmentalism. Their research
examines how markets encourage cooperation instead of
conflict over natural resources and how property rights
make the environment an asset by giving owners
incentives for stewardship. While hunting and fishing
has declined in recent years, wildlife viewing and other
non-consumptive activities are increasing.
PERC's Summer 2019 magazine explores these challenges
and their implications for wildlife management today.
(06/20/19)
Southern pine bark beetles cause more damage to southern
pine timber than any other forest insect in Alabama.
On average, the state loses 60,000 pine trees a year
during a southern pine bark beetle outbreak that totals
approximately $800,000 in economic loss. According to
the trap data that is based on Southern Pine Beetle
population level, Alabama should have a low to moderate
number of infestations this year. Although it's only a
prediction,
this map
shows where the risk is for infestations.
(06/19/19)
If you've ever watched birds and
wondered, what is that bird, Merlin can help. Using
your smart phone, Merlin Bird ID is designed to be a
birding coach for beginning and intermediate bird
watchers.
Merlin, created by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
and thousands of volunteer citizen scientists,
photographers, audio recordists, field guide authors,
and bird enthusiasts is a free app that is a bird ID
tool and digital field guide all in one.
(06/18/19)
Do the benefits of owner financing
outweigh the risks when selling property?
Thoughts to ponder include the tax and income benefit
versus the possibility of default.
(06/17/19)
Several studies have shown that
outside time leads to higher test scores, lower anxiety
and aggression, more creativity and improved attention
spans.
Some schools are taking notice and adding their own
outdoor classrooms with good results. Studies
have focused not so much on what is lost when nature
experience fades, but on what is gained through more
exposure to natural settings,
which
we covered in a newscast in November 2005.
(06/14/19)
Tom Saunders, the
legislative team of the Alabama Forestry Association,
and several Alabama senators and representatives deserve
a huge thank-you for their hard work to pass Senate Bill
282.
The bill
exempts timber lands from local fire district service
charges and fees, but allows landowners who
desire to enter into a voluntary agreement with a local
fire district. Also, forestland fees in the Concord and
Birmingport fire districts were negotiated down from
previous highs of as much as $8 per acre, but not fully
exempted.
The bill
passed unanimously in the Senate and 91 to 2 in the
House with 5 abstentions.
(06/13/19)
Dreaming of a bucket list vacation?
You can trade the use of your land in exchange for trips
and save money doing so.
This podcast from Great Days Outdoors tells all
about it.
(06/12/19)
The global trade of wood pellets jumped more than 21
percent
year-over-year in 2018
when a new record of 22.3 million tons was shipped.
And pellet production in the US South continued at
record pace.
(06/11/19)
Alabama has a strong growing forest resource.
Our state is growing 2.581 billion cubic feet of wood
and harvesting 1.224 billion cubic feet annually, and,
for the past five years, averages more than 80,000 acres
yearly reverting into forest.
(06/10/19)
Georgia Pacific is closing its Monroeville, AL facility
but investing and adding jobs in their facilities in
Choctaw and Escambia counties.
(06/07/19)
Telefonica's trials of early forest fire detection
system using ioT drones have been successful in
Madrid.
(06/06/19)
Alabama and the South aren't
the only places with feral pig problems.
Wild Boars are spreading their devastation in Canada,
too.
(06/05/19)
With a forecast of an additional 3 BBFT of sawmill
capacity and an additional 13 million tons of truckloads
of wood, Bill HB 479,allows Alabama to issue
Class A commercial driver licenses (CDLs) to people
between the ages of 18 – 21 for intrastate use.
Governor Kay Ivey signed this into law May 29.
(06/03/19)
Historically, reforestation has been
a strong long-term investment for landowners. By
understanding planting costs and expected returns,
landowners can make appropriate reforestation decisions
to ensure profitability at any investment level.
This economic analysis assesses the pine reforestation
investment based on current stumpage prices and
associated costs to determine whether it still offers
attractive returns.
(05/31/19)
If you're considering buying or building a pond, you
want to hear this Hunting Land podcast.
Learn what it takes to construct a
pond and have everything you need to start the process
and how a pond affects property value and marketability.
(05/30/19) The
South is the nation's leader in setting small wildfires
on purpose
which gets rid of duff and kindling,
and prevents massive fires like those out West.
(05/29/19)
About 30 forest
landowners and property managers attended a Forestry
Field Day in Baldwin County. Hosted by the AFOA,
consulting forester JJ McCool spoke on how to manage
property while increasing wildlife habitat quality.
Check
out the article published in the Baldwin times on May 24
(second page).
(05/28/19)
The Alabama Forestry Association's 2019 Alabama Teachers
Conservation Workshop Series will be held June
25-26 in Tuscaloosa and July 16-18 in Auburn.
(05/24/19)
Wildfires can appear on radar.
Alan Sealls with WKRG-TV explains how.
(05/23/19)
More Canadian owned sawmills may come south.
Tolko Industries decided to close its Quest sawmill in
Quesnel
and one report predicts the equivalent of 12 more
will be shuttered in the next decade to cope with B.C.’s
shrinking timber supply.
(05/22/19) New
hunting license required to hunt over bait. The
Alabama Legislature recently passed legislation that
allows hunters on privately owned or leased land to
purchase a bait privilege license.
Listen to what the new baiting law in Alabama means for
hunters in the state.
(05/17/19)
Anti-Litter Bill Advances in House, reports the
Alabama Conservationist.
HB500 is sponsored by
Rep. Margie Wilcox, (R-Mobile).
Please send your comments to AFOA
(RLL@AFOA.org)
about this bill -- is it good or bad for rural forest
owners? Thanks.
(05/16/19)
This podcast is a good discussion on the reasons to use
title insurance when buying land.
(05/15/19)
Maryland-based biomass
company
Enviva, the world’s largest
producer of wood pellets, has plans for a new pellet
mill in Lucedale, Mississippi, which would bring
jobs to the small town.
Andy
Gipson, commissioner of the Mississippi Department of
Agriculture and Commerce, thinks this plant is good idea
for Mississippi. The Dogwood Alliance, based in
North Carolina, disagrees.
(05/14/19)
A 2,624-Year-Old bald cypress tree has just been found
growing in a swamp along the Black River in North
Carolina. This makes the bald cypress the
oldest-known wetland tree species, the oldest living
trees in eastern North America, and the fifth oldest
known non-clonal tree species on Earth.
(05/13/19)
Dog Deer Hunting Regulations Tighten.
The Alabama Conservation Advisory Board has recommended
a regulation change in dog deer hunting
that would allow Wildlife and
Freshwater Fisheries (WFF) Conservation Enforcement
Officers to ticket individual owners of dogs that
venture onto neighboring property. “This would be
strictly a dog deer hunting regulation,” said Matt
Weathers, WFF’s Chief Enforcement Officer. “It is fairly
simple. If a landowner or person who has land leased
calls us about problems with a dog deer hunting club or
dogs showing up on their property, our officer instructs
the person who made the call to catch the dog or
document in some way who the dog belongs to."
(05/10/19)
“Southern yellow pine
cross-laminated timber
manufactured by International Beams
in Dothan, Alabama is the key design feature in the
construction of
Clemson’s new Outdoor Education Center...”
(05/09/19)
Thanks to this week's
Wednesday Woodland Word
for leading us to the U. S. Forest
Service's
Environmentally Sensitive Road Maintenance Practices for
Dirt and Gravel Roads. Excellent photos and
diagrams.
(05/08/19)
Roundup safe to use. “EPA has found no risks to
public health from the current registered uses of
glyphosate,” said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler.
(05/06/19)
We think you will find
NPR's recent lively discussion on bringing back the
American chestnut tree from the brink of
extinction interesting and thought-provoking. Enjoy.
(05/0319)
Georgia-Pacific has announced plans to invest more than
$120 million to add a new tissue machine and roll
storage building at its mill in Naheola,
Alabama, the latest substantial investment in the
facility. In the past five years, Georgia-Pacific’s
capital investment in the Choctaw County mill has
totaled more than $500 million.
(05/02/19)
In order to combat a potential worker shortage,
the Alabama Forestry Association, along with the Forest
Workforce Training Institute, are holding several
logging equipment operator schools
throughout Alabama. The course is
free, and students will receive $20 per day to help with
travel expenses. Applications are still open for the
third course of the year that will be held in Ozark from
July 8 until August 2.
They also
have planned teacher workshops this summer and forestry
career days this fall.
(05/01/19)
The Land Show with Dave and Johnny is a weekly
broadcast that offers a lot of information for
landowners. During
The Land Show Episode 132, AFOA Executive Vice
President, Lee Laechelt talks about the benefits of
membership in the association. His interview starts at
the 4:10 mark and ends at 20:00, however the last five
minutes are about last year's (2018) annual meeting.
(04/30/19)
Beginning on May 1, 2019,
no vegetative or land-clearing burning will be allowed
in the following counties: Baldwin, Mobile, DeKalb,
Montgomery, Etowah, Morgan, Jefferson (no
agricultural or silviculture burning allowed either),
Shelby, Lawrence, Russell, Madison and Talladega.
Some agricultural and silvicultural
burning may be allowed in these counties during these
months with prior approval from ADEM and the Alabama
Forestry Commission. Unless prohibited for drought and
safety reasons, the burn ban does not prohibit the use
of outdoor fireplaces and camp fires. The annual burn
ban ends on October 31.
Source: In the South Next Month
(May 2019), by Jim Noles of Barze
Taylor Noles Lowther, LLC.
(04/29/19)
Battling forest fires
requires specialized training and equipment that local
fire districts don’t have. Yet, they have been charging
forest owners up to $8 per acre in fees.
Senate Bill 282, sponsored by Sen. Greg Albritton
(R-Atmore),
aims to put a stop to that by
leaving fire protection on privately owned property used
for timber production to the Alabama Forestry
Commission. That means that forest owners would not have
to pay twice for fire services.
Currently, timberland owners pay for fire service
through a tax on their products [and a 10 cent per acre
fee included in property tax bills] in addition to the
fees levied by fire districts.
(04/25/19)
Learn more about deer
hunting, biology, management and conservation
by listening to these podcasts
that featured Quality Deer
Management Association staff members as guests.
(04/24/19)
Out of 56,180 registered voters in Elmore County,
only 1,919 decided the outcome of Amendment 382,
which approved an additional 3 mils of school tax. It
won by a margin of 37 votes: 978 for and 941 against.
Voters also approved the continuation of 7 mils ad
valorem taxes for the school system.
(04/23/19)
Ben Westfall Joins Quality Deer Management Association
(QDMA)
as a QDM Cooperative Specialist,
giving South Alabamians another resource to improve the
quality and overall health of a deer herd. In
partnership with the Alabama Wildlife Federation (AWF),
Ben will work with private landowners and hunting clubs
to establish and support QDM Cooperatives in
Southwest Alabama. For hunters interested in hunting a
quality deer herd, QDMA said that
QDM cooperatives can provide the greatest potential for
success.
(04/22/19)
Think you want to build a pond on
your land?
Talk to these three professionals first.
(04/19/19)
"Measuring wood is a complex
process in the US. Wood can be sold by weight or
volume and prices can be quoted either way as well. The
weight per unit (e.g., tons per 1,000 board feet (MBF))
will vary by species." Forest Economist Jack Lutz
provides an interesting discussion in
How Much Wood Is That?, Forest Research Notes,
Volume 16, Number 1.
(04/18/19)
Bleak and categorically mixed is how
Virginia Tech described their
monthly housing report for February 2019.
(04/17/19)
If you own more than 150,000 acres
you might make this list. The Land Report, "The
Magazine Of The American Landowner," publishes a list of
the 100 biggest private landowners in the U.S. every
year.
Here are the top 20.
(04/16/19)
Smoking creates a powerful flavor
for meat, but
not all smoke is created equally.
Different woods are better suited
for certain meats and big game while others are better
for fish and chicken.
(04/15/19)
Complex, complicated and possibly
catastrophic:
Senator Ron Wyden's (D,WA) proposed capital gains
taxation would require investors to pay the
capital gains tax on the appreciation of their assets
each year instead of when they sell an asset.
(04/12/19)
An opinion piece authored by The
Dogwood Alliance made an attempt to change the global
conversation about working forests based solely on fear.
To rebut this misinformation,
Biomass101 addressed it with actual facts and science.
(04/11/19)
A 70-year-old avid
hiker spent three days missing in the Bankhead Forest
because searchers could not track
his cell phone. One way to lessen the chances of being
lost is to use a satellite messenger device or a
location sharing app. Stephen Logan, F & W Forestry
Services, will share how these different devices work
during his seminar,
Working Alone in the Woods at the
AFOA annual meeting April
27 at Wind Creek Atmore.
(04/10/19)
Management by objectives will save
you time and money while increasing returns and
enjoyment of your forest property.
A clear plan gives you a greater chance for success.
Wondering how to start?
This will help.
(04/09/19)
Discover what you don't know about
planting summer and spring food plots for deer and
turkey.
The Huntin' Land Podcast
covers why it's important
information to know.
(04/08/19) Following
a wildfire,
direct seeding can be a quick way to regenerate
your forest. Once your site is prepared for receiving
the seed (either by a wildfire or a prescribed burn), it
can be cost effective. Gary Delaney with Louisiana
Forest Seed will speak on this topic at the
AFOA's annual meeting April 27 at Wind Creek
Atmore.
(04/05/19)
Kudos to the National Association of
State Foresters for such a useful newsletter full of
information for landowners each Friday. Check it out
here:
Highlights for the week of April 1, 2019.
(04/04/19)
Elmore County is set to have their
Ad Valorem School Tax Special Election on Tuesday, April
23, 2019, and after reviewing the ballot, it seems to
have a
new tax added to the continuation measures. What
do you think?
(04/03/19)
Whether you are planning to prepare
sites for tree planting, release natural pine seedlings
from competing brush and herbaceous weeds, or maintain
trails or fire lanes, you will find
Forestry Herbicide Prescriptions
chock full of useful information.
(04/01/19)
"The most destructive pest in Southern forests is the
Southern pine beetle," reports Andrew Baril in
The News Courier, 03/24/19. To learn more about the
Southern Pine Beetle Monitoring & Notification System
developed by the Alabama Forestry Commission, make plans
now to attend
AFOA's Annual Meeting on April 27 at Wind
Creek Casino and Hotel in Atmore.
(03/29/19)
Four feet long!
Big tegu lizards are being found in South Georgia;
we suspect Alabama will have them soon.
(03/28/19)
“For wise stewardship of our natural
resources, to maintain the current high quality of our
hunting and buck harvest, and to combat the increasing
spread of Chronic Wasting Disease,
we need to refocus some of our efforts on antlerless
deer or we will lose the gains we’ve accomplished over
the past two decades.”
(03/27/19)
Timber Rights and Life-Estates
-- Recent case in North Carolina
will be interesting to some.
(3/26/19)
Alabama
Forestry Commission Urges Caution with All Burning.
(3/25/19)
Long periods of wet weather frequently lead to higher
stumpage prices for timber on easily drained soils
(uplands with sandy soil, for example). Most wood buyers
and many landowners are aware of this, but the smart
folks at Forest2Market have gone a step further. Read
Correlating Rainfall & Timber Prices: What Does the Data
Say?
by John Greene.
(3/22/19)
Landowners and officials from
agriculture, environmental and property rights groups
told the committee that while they understand the
necessity of eminent domain, [Texas] state law makes it
impossible for landowners to get a fair shake.”
We think this story deserves more attention –
eminent domain is a serious concern for the owners of
the land in question.
(3/21/19)
The US Fish and Wildlife Service is
evaluating the Alabama pearlshell mussel, which is
listed as endangered, to see if reclassification is
warranted. As critical habitat regulations often
affect landowners, those with land in the Alabama and
Conecuh river drainages in Conecuh, Crenshaw, Monroe,
and Escambia counties should be aware of this action.
Read
the full release here.
(3/20/19)
South Alabama landowners, particularly those who own
cypress swamps and low-lying, wetland forest, may
appreciate these flyers on
natural reforestation and
replanting in cypress swamps. They’re available for
free on the
North Carolina Forest Service website here, under
the “Water Quality” tab.
(3/19/19))
Salvage harvest, determining casualty loss, and a
reforestation plan: a consulting forester describes
the
next steps and possible resources for landowners who
have lost timber to Hurricane Michael.
(3/18/19)
“If we want more trees, we should all be using more
products made from trees.”
This op-ed comes from Congressman Bruce Westerman,
Chairman of the House Working Forests Caucus.
(3/15/19)
“Hardwoods, including red oak,
are less dependent on US housing than are softwoods.
Red oak goes into flooring and, depending on consumer
demand, furniture, moulding and millworks, and cabinets.
It also is used in truck trailer beds, railroad ties,
pallets, and commercial furniture and fittings.”
More about red oak here from the Forest Research Group.
(3/14/19)
“Our
old way of thinking about paper is obsolete.
…There is technology today that can turn paper products
into fabric used on everything from handbags to soccer
balls and car dashboards.” This article about the future
of forest products includes a summary of the TedTalk "Why
I think Paper is Sexy," about innovation in the
paper industry.
(3/13/19)
Who is affected by the estate tax? Banks Ladd,
the author of
this post about the estate tax and estate tax exemptions,
will speak to us about estate planning at our Annual
Meeting on April 27, at 1:50 p.m. at the Wind Creek
Casino & Hotel in Atmore. Orman Wilson will speak the
same day on Forest Taxation: Income, Basis, Capital
Gains, Tree Planting, & Management Expenses. He’ll
be at the podium at 3:35 p.m. to speak and answer
questions.
Check the program agenda here regularly for new
additions to the lineup.
(3/12/19)
The Alabama Forestry Commission released this
estimate of timber damage across the state from the
March 3 tornadoes. The document includes marked
aerial photos of the affected areas.
The AFC also issued a warning against burning tornado
debris:
“With the large amount of timber
that was downed by the storms, we must take every
precaution necessary to avoid the start of wildfires and
further loss of homes and property.”
(3/11/19))
This video illustrates why the El Nino phenomenon
happens and how it affects weather patterns all over
the country, including Alabama. The wet winters of El
Nino may provide an opportunity for forest landowners
with high, well drained soil to sell timber when
other stands are too wet for logging.
(3/8/19)
“Stores
are struggling to keep wood pellets on the shelves,
impacting those who rely on them to heat their homes.”
Unlike the international pellet market, wood pellet
demand in the US is driven by individuals, not
government policy.
(3/7/19)
“Today,
the U.S. South is the largest wood pellet producing
region in North America….Driven by export-oriented
projects, [wood pellet] capacity in the U.S. South is
expected to advance 47% over the next two years.”
However, forest landowners interested in pellet markets
should be aware that there is
resistance to the pellet industry.
(3/6/19)
“With forecasted slow, steady
increases in housing starts and increased sawmilling
activity across the South, what does the future for
lumber look like?”
Forest2Market explores three
data-based possibilities in its
five-year forecast for lumber demand.
(3/5/19)
After a hurricane or tornado, timber
is often damaged and hard to get out. “Prescribed
burning can help forest ecosystems recover. It can
also help reduce the potential wildfire risk…”
(3/4/19)
Some reassuring news for parents and grandparents
worried about screen time for kids: “Farmville is coming
to farming. These kids that have grown up in this
virtual world of gaming will be running our precision
farming tools…”
(3/1/19)
HEALTH INSURANCE: Are you interested in lower
premiums, lower out-of-pocket costs, lower co-pays, and
lower prescription costs? We need your help! We’ve
created a webpage to keep you informed on our progress.
If you are interested in buying more affordable health
insurance, please join our Census of Forest Landowners.
Click Here For More Information.
(2/28/19)
COSTS & COST TRENDS FOR FORESTRY: Dr. Adam
Maggard, Auburn University, is gathering information on
the costs of forestry practices, such as tree planting
and prescribed burning.
If you would like to provide input, take the survey here.
(2/27/19)
"Spring
food plots for deer and turkey
continue to provide forage and
help keep them on your hunting property."
(2/26/19)
“Potential
buyers need to be aware that we are in a rising rate
environment and that, while interest rates aren’t at
rock bottom, they are still very near historic lows.
You can hear a full discussion of Borrowing Money to Buy
Land on Saturday, April 27 at the 2019 AFOA Annual
Meeting.
Click here and scroll to page 2 for the list of speakers
and times.
(2/25/19)
Gov. Kay Ivey is expected to announce proposed
legislation on the gas tax
at a conference in Maplesville on
Wednesday. “Deficiencies in county roads and bridges
have been one of the main problems cited by supporters
of an increase in the state gasoline tax, which hasn’t
changed since 1992.”
(2/22/19)
“...institute reforms by ending
the drainage of the Road and Bridge Fund to outside
agencies and by eliminating the practice of rebating
gas tax revenues.”
Read more from the Alabama Policy Institute on gas taxes
and infrastructure. Remember: Timber trapped
behind bad roads and bridges is very difficult to sell.
(2/21/19)
"Hand-applied herbicides are
effective tools that selectively control vegetation
in a variety of circumstances.
This guide reviews the most efficient and cost effective
methods
and formulations to conduct forest
resource management on your land."
(2/20/19)
These interesting
watershed maps highlight the world’s river basins in
brilliant color.
You can see the Alabama watershed
map, largely dominated by one system of waterways,
in more detail at the artist’s website here.
(2/19/19))
"In total, there are approximately
458 establishments in Alabama
that are engaged in the production
of hardwood products." This translates to
$6.4 billion in value to the Alabama economy in 2016,
according to the Hardwood Federation.
Visit their site for more details
and to see the economic impact of
hardwoods in other states or the entire region.
(2/18/19)
Turkey season starts as early as
March 16 in some zones.
Click here and scroll down to see the turkey season
dates and zone map.
Useful whether you hunt turkey or
lease your land for turkey hunting
and want to avoid scaring off the
gobblers.
(2/15/19)
“2,000,000,000:
the number of wood pallets used in the US each day
to move and store goods.” See more videos about
forests and the forest industry at
#forestproud.
(2/14/19)
Quality Deer Management Association
(QDMA) highlighted
some of the strangest ways people found shed antlers
in the woods. As you’re out and about in your forest,
remember it’s shed season, and be on the lookout for a
good find.
(2/13/19)
“What
we’d like to see is tree farmers and forest landowners
create a co-op to help offset the imbalance. …
You can do it for soybeans, cotton and other
agricultural products, but it’s not allowed for
forestry. That would take a legislative change. It would
take a long time to push it through, but we’re not
afraid to give it a go.” We haven’t heard about a timber
sellers’ cooperative – if you know anything about
efforts to make this possible, please contact us at
RLL@afoa.org
(2/12/19)
"Forest Landowners Association (FLA)
praised the approval of a "Buy America" executive
order which prioritizes buying goods made in the United
States, including lumber, for any federally funded
infrastructure projects.
Read more about FLA's thoughts on this bill here."
This seems to be good for wood growers, but maybe not
for taxpayers. What do you think?
(2/8/19)
“The
scenario that comes up the most often is stand
initialization. Schweitzer is often asked about using
prescribed fire to ensure that oaks outcompete other
woody vegetation.” Dr. Callie Schweitzer’s
presentation at the 2018 AFOA Annual Meeting has more
useful information about
managing forestland for quality hardwood.
(2/7/19)
“State
programs that offer tax breaks to forest landowners
indirectly promote ecosystem services,” or the public
value that forestland provides, like cleaner air and
water. In Alabama, it’s called current-use assessment.
Landowners have to
apply for current-use at the tax assessor’s office.
Property taxes on forestland assessed under current-use
are usually no more than $2 per acre.
(2/6/19)
“This
latest winter cold snap is leading to a shortage in wood
pellets.” Not only are people in the Ozarks region
using more pellets because of the severity of the cold,
but some mills aren’t operating in the severe weather,
so the sawdust byproduct used to make the pellets is
in short supply.
(2/5/19)
Video:
How to measure tree diameter with a scale stick.
We often give away scale sticks to those who do best in
the tree measuring workshop at the AFOA annual meeting,
so study up!
Check here for an updated schedule for the 2019 AFOA
Annual Meeting.
(2/4/19)
“According to USDA ERS, farm
incomes in 2017 were 32% higher than average U.S.
household incomes– higher than the taxpayers subsiding
them--while about 60% of subsidies for the three
main farm programs went to the biggest 10% of farms.”
LANDTHINK readers were divided nearly down the
middle on
whether the timber industry should receive government
subsidies.
(2/1/19)
“During the month of February,
The American Chestnut Foundation will once again be
selling pure American bareroot seedlings in bundles
of 10, 25, and 50. … The pure American chestnuts can
survive many years and may even produce seeds, but
the trees are susceptible to blight.”
(1/31/18)
In a vote on Tuesday,
Butler County voters overwhelmingly rejected a six-mill
property tax increase.
(1/30/19)
We will see Southern Yellow Pine
“production capacity increasing by more than 25 percent,”
between 2017 and 2022, thanks to new mills using
technologies that get higher piece counts and better
quality.
Read more about the technologies changing the SYP lumber
industry.
(1/29/19)
This is probably not available to
Alabama landowners, but an interesting idea: "The
WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA PRESCRIBED BURNING TRAILER
is ready to RENT! It contains all of the tools you
requested to help you burn your land. The cost is $100
per day.”
(1/28/19)
If you’re considering building
home or cabin in the woods,
these fact sheets cover wildfire-preparedness for
residential homes, from crawl spaces to fencing.
(1/25/19)
"The Beck Group projects that
average
SYP sawmill production levels will rise from 125 million
board feet in 2012 to over 200 million board feet
a decade later. … This change in
scale will have significant impacts on productivity and
manufacturing costs, delivered log costs, and other
operating metrics in the coming year.”
(1/24/19)
In this video, Florida landowner John Alter and Caroline
Dauzat, owner of Rex Lumber Company, testified
before the Florida Senate Agriculture Committee about
the catastrophic damage, current and future
challenges, and potential effect to the state economy
from Hurricane Michael. Dauzat's testimony begins at
1:12:18, and Alter's begins at 1:17:23.
Read more about the accomplishments of John Alter here,
dubbed “King of the Trees” by friends because of the
large acreage of forestland he manages.
(1/23/19)
White-Nose Syndrome is devastating
certain bat populations, which in turn brings
restrictions on land use and maintenance for timberland
owners with land designated “critical habitat.” (See
a previous post on this issue here.)
New research shows simple UV light
kills the fungus that causes the
disease, which could bring relief for bats and forest
landowners.
(1/22/19)
If you have timber ready to harvest, on land dry
enough to log, check with your consulting forester.
Our wet weather may be providing you an opportunity to
sell stumpage at a good price. Then read on here for
more
discussion of the many variables that go into choosing a
good time to harvest.
(1/21/19)
“This
project focuses on families who own large tracts of
forestland [and have owned their land for multiple
generations] in the United States and manage them for
economic return.” There may be lessons for other
landowners on how these families acquired so many acres
of timberland and continue to maintain it so well.
(1/17/19)
According to the Southern Forestry
Nursery Management Cooperative at Auburn University,
parts of Alabama will experience temperatures well below
freezing, down to 20°F on Sunday and again the following
Friday. In a special alert,
ArborGen advised against planting during a freeze
event, but said if it is unavoidable, plant seedlings
deep, during the daytime when temperatures are above
freezing, and store seedlings in refrigerated coolers or
enclosed areas where temperatures will not go below
freezing—never outside or simply under a tarp.
(1/16/19)
On April 26, AFOA will be touring
some of the forestry work of the Poarch Creek Band of
Creek Indians.
This video will give us an understanding of the goals
they’ve set for their forest management activities.
This trip is part of the AFOA Annual Meeting.
Registration instructions for the Annual Meeting will be
in the February newsletter, but you can go ahead and
reserve your room now. Details: 2019 Annual Meeting:
April 26-27. Wind Creek Casino & Hotel, Atmore, Alabama.
Room Reservations: (251) 446-4290, Group Code: AFOA
(1/15/19)
Georgia-Pacific to shut down all paper machines,
wood yard, and pulp mill at its Port Hudson, LA mill.
The company cited a “declining market,” for paper,
but also said “roughly 300 employees will stay on as
part of its consumer tissue and towel business.” In
other market news, a Maryland company plans to invest
millions in
a new wood pellet mill and ship-loading terminal on the
Mississippi Gulf Coast. Edited to add: This
“could ripple into an estimated loss of nearly 2,150
other jobs across Louisiana, an economic model
produced by an LSU AgCenter economist shows. … The
layoffs will result in the loss of nearly $188 million
in labor income and nearly $22.8 million in tax revenue
for state and local governments.” This does not
include lost revenue for landowners, or the economic
ripple effect in Mississippi.
(1/14/19)
Are you planting longleaf pine,
burning an existing stand, or replanting longleaf after
hurricane damage? "The
Forest Landowners Association
has cost-share funds for private
forest landowners available … Unlike other cost-share
opportunities, the process to receive these funds is
simple and straightforward. There are no AGI limits or
government forms to complete." Please contact Lauren
Ward, FLA Director of Stewardship Initiatives, at
lward@forestlandowners.com to inquire about
receiving cost-share for longleaf activities.
(1/11/19)
The QDMA (Quality Deer Management
Association) is offering a “Conservation
Seed Program to help get viable seed planted across
the landscape to benefit whitetails, other wildlife
species, and your hunting this fall.” The seed is $9
per 50 lb. bag to QDMA members, but nonmembers can buy
it by adding a $35 membership to their first bag of seed.
(1/10/19)
Old growth forests are great for
some species of birds, such as many of
Alabama’s woodpecker species. However, “logging
can be essential to creating bird habitat. …
Scientists are just now coming to realize
how critical young forest is for a host of species.”
(1/9/19)
“Researchers
found that high levels of major compounds in soil
organic matter
— humic acids — degrade CWD
(Chronic Wasting Disease) prions.” Finally some good
news about this lethal cervid disease that has been very
difficult to fight or even slow down.
(1/8/19)
"For the first time in history,
science and technology have advanced to the point that
we have the tools to restore much that we’re losing."
How a Mass Extinction Can Help Save Our Forest – A
TEDx talk from retired US Forest Ranger Rex Mann.
(1/7/19)
With Chronic Wasting Disease creeping closer to
Alabama,
this discussion on eating venison
is relevant to hunters and
landowners who lease their land for hunting. More
episodes of
Deer University from Mississippi State University
Extension Service can be viewed here.
(1/4/19)
"Oak is tasty and all, but what
flavors might be able to coaxed of out of other types of
wood?" Not all wood has the cellular structure to
create watertight barrels,
but the use of other woods in aging spirits may be
important for forest owners with white oak, or thinking
of planting white oak. Market changes are hard to
predict fifty years ahead of time, the growing period
for many hardwoods.
(1/3/19)
"International
Paper is once again planning a major re-investment
in its Coosa linerboard mill [in Rome, Georgia], to the
tune of up to $150 million."
(1/2/19)
“With an additional 1 billion board
feet (BBF) of production coming online in 2019, the
[southeast] region will consume 2-3 million more tons of
sawtimber, but there will not be any appreciable
movement in price.” Read more about this and other
predictions for global wood markets from Forest2Market.
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